RP 2011-11-15
18:13:40 KataraPlushie Katara leaned against the wall of her house, a smile spread across her face. The sun was dawning on what seemed like a gorgeous day, perfect considering the fact that today was her boyfriend's 14th birthday.(cont'd) 18:15:30 KataraPlushie She had been anticipating this day for a while now, planning out everything carefully. It would be a surprise party and she had entrusted Sokka to keep Aang company while everything was prepared. It would mean avoiding him for part of the day, but she hoped he wouldn't be too upset by that. 18:17:55 AangPlushie Aang stepped outside into the sunny day, excited for clear reasons. Today was the day he turned 14. Technically, he was 114, but he considered himself as 14. He was looking forward to spending time with his girlfrend, when suddenly, he was approached by Sokka. (conr'd) 18:18:39 AangPlushie "Aang, happy birthday, my good man!" Sokka offered the Water Tribe handshake. "Another year older... 18:28:23 KataraPlushie It was a little while later and Katara stood in a large building, commonly used as a banquet hall, hoping that by now Sokka was off entertaining Aang and keeping him away from here. Preparations were already underway with decorations, including various ice sculptures, being set up. 18:31:34 AangPlushie With midday slightly passed, Aang found himself at lunch with Sokka. "Sokka, I haven't seen Katara all day," Aang said, slightly concerned. "I wanted to spend some time with her..." Sokka quickly brushed this aside to detract from a possible spoiler. "It's all right Aang, Katara's fine! Come on, you can see her more later. For now, just relax, it's your birthday lunch!" Aang tried to relax,... 18:31:34 AangPlushie ...but he looked out the window of the small restaurant they were in, his mind clearly focused on her. 18:35:42 KataraPlushie Hakoda arrived at the scene shortly afterwards. "Everything going smoothly here?" he asked. Katara grinned and replied, "Just fine. The decorations are almost all set up and there have been no signs of Aang or Sokka which means Sokka must be doing a good job of keeping the coast clear."(cont'd) 18:38:28 KataraPlushie Hakoda nodded. "That's good to hear. And you have your things ready, I'm sure?" She nodded happily; she had done quite a bit to get the two things she had for Aang ready, but the results were worth it. "I just hope I'm not upsetting him in any way by avoiding him," she admitted, casting her gaze off to the side. 18:43:33 AangPlushie Lunch time had passed a couple of hours ago, and Sokka continued his distractions. "Aang, don't you want to come check out some new weaponry with me?" Aang quickly went the other way. "Sokka, please, I want to go see Katara!" Sokka knew he was getting into a turbulent situation. He reached out and grabbed Aang's arm. "Come on, Aang, I told you, Katara's fine! Don't you want to see if you can get a windsword, you know, as a birthday gift?" Aang sadly sighed. "I guess...but please, can we go back home after this?" 18:48:06 KataraPlushie Katara had quickly and quietly slipped out of the banquet hall where all the decorations and such were ready. She had received reassuring words from her father that Aang would understand in the end and was now in her house, getting ready to carry over her own presents to the site of the party.(cont'd) 18:51:28 KataraPlushie She opened up a large chest in her bedroom and carefully pulled out two wrapped items. One was a beautifully crafted urn imported all the way from Ba Sing Se with a birthday message inscribed on the side. The other was a new parka for him that she had made herself from some of the softest material she could find. She hoped he would like them both. 18:54:01 AangPlushie After their weaponry search came up empty, Aang and Sokka continued to roam the center of the Southern city. "Sokka, please...it's getting close to sunset. Can't we go home now?" Aang asked with a despondent look. "My birthday's almost over and I haven't spent a second with Katara." Sokka thought about the current time, trying to speculate when his sister would be ready. (cont'd) 18:55:59 AangPlushie He decided that Katara and his family likely still were not ready. "One more thing, Aang, come look at the outskirts! I saw this..." he couldn't think of anything, his stall tactics starting to wane. "Just...come with me!" He dragged Aang along, much to the young Avatar's further disappointment. 19:00:40 KataraPlushie Katara had returned with the packages and was more than happy to see that a lot of guests were already present including the little children who had adored Aang from the very beginning. She spotted her father, Pakku and Kanna seated together and, after setting down the presents, approached them. "Looks like everything's pretty much ready to go," she remarked.(cont'd) 19:02:44 KataraPlushie "Pretty much," Kanna told her. "Now to wait for the guest of honor and your brother." "Yeah, I wonder where they are," Katara said. "I hope they aren't too long. In the mean time, we should probably get in position, so we're ready when they come." "Smart idea," Hakoda said, rising. 19:07:44 AangPlushie The sun had now faded, and Sokka figured everything was ready. "All right Aang, let's--" he noticed that Aang was sitting on the ground, his arms over his knees, his head buried. "Aang?" Sokka asked. "Sokka, the day's pretty much over...I never got to see Katara...all I wanted was to see her once on my birthday." Sokka sighed, seeing what he had caused. "Aang...I'm sorry. I guess I did keep... 19:07:44 AangPlushie ...you from her. Let's go home." The two young men rose and made their way back. Suddenly, Sokka raced out in front of Aang, changing direction. "Sokka?" Aang asked out loud. 19:12:21 KataraPlushie All were now crowded together, anticipating the moment where Aang and Sokka would finally arrive. Katara stood at the front, growing more and more eager. "How much longer do we have to wait?" a little girl asked. "I'm sure they're on their way here now," Katara smiled and reassured her. Suddenly, she heard fast footsteps from right outside. 19:14:04 AangPlushie Sokka had gotten out of Aang's sight and into the banquet hall. Puzzled, Aang looked over the streets, wondering where Sokka could have gone. "So many footprints...who knows which are Sokka's..." he wondered out loud. 19:16:22 KataraPlushie To Katara's surprise, Sokka burst through the entrance. A few unintentional "suprise"'s were uttered by villagers before they realized Sokka had come alone. "Sokka? What are you doing? Where's Aang?" Katara asked. She couldn't help but be a little irritated. Leave it to my brother to leave him now... 19:17:33 AangPlushie After some time wandering up and down the streets, Aang gave up on trying to find Sokka. His head hanging down, he decided to defy Sokka's apparent stalling and headed for home, hoping to find Katara. 19:19:39 KataraPlushie "I ran ahead, hoping he would follow behind me," Sokka sheepishly replied. "But it looks like I lost him. I don't know where he is now." Great..., she thought. "Please go find him, Sokka. Check his house or wherever. Just hurry!" Sokka took off. 19:22:00 AangPlushie Aang made his way into the house. "Katara? Sokka? Hakoda? Anyone?" He quickly realized he was alone. "Just great...I'm here alone...who knows where anyone went." He made his way to a couch, and tears began to trickle down his cheeks. "My supposedly favorite day of the year....and I was dragged around pointlessly, not once getting to see Katara..." (cont'd) 19:24:18 AangPlushie Sokka quickly made his way over to the house, to see the broken Avatar. "There you are, Aang! Where did you go?" Aang turned away from Sokka. "Look," Sokka began. "I'm sorry I dragged you around town all day. But please...there's one more thing I want to show you. And this is it. After this, we can go meet Katara and the rest of the family. I promise. And I'm also sorry for running away from you...I got ahead of myself" Aang wiped the tears from his eyes. "Fine...I forgive you." The two left the house and made their way back towards the banquet hall. 18:29:36 Some of the villagers were growing restless, shifting about uncomfortably yet still keeping bright smiles plastered on their faces. Katara wondered where Sokka was and was about to go search for them when two pairs of feet could be heard shuffling towards the entrance.(cont'd) 18:31:33 "Here they come!" she said in a loud whisper and everyone waited expectantly. Just then, Sokka and Aang opened the door and walked in, Sokka gesturing dramatically for the Avatar to enter. Before he could take in everything, the whole village yelled, "SURPRISE!" 18:33:01 As Aang was looking around, the villagers' simultaneous shout made him jump slightly. He looked around in clear shock and confusion, clearly not expecting what had just happened. While he was still processing things, his girlfriend ran up to him. 18:35:02 Katara excitedly raced over and gave him a warm hug. "Happy Birthday, Aang!" she exclaimed. She could tell he was still clearly shocked by everything. 18:36:29 Aang accepted the hug from Katara, though he had yet to see in full what the situation was. "Katara...what's going on? I...I don't get it." 18:38:52 Katara looked at him, beaming, and chuckled slightly. "It's a surprise birthday party for you, silly! The Avatar deserves a special celebration on his 14th birthday, right? That's why I had Sokka keep you busy all day. I hope I didn't upset you too much about that." 18:42:22 Aang remained perplexed. "I never have had a surprise party before....I don't think I've ever heard of such a concept, actually..." he semi-chuckled. "Yeah, Aang, that's why we haven't seen Katara today...see, I had my reasons," Sokka told him. "Now come on, it's a party! Let's party it up!" Sokka disappeared to within the party, while Aang looked at Katara. "No, it's all right, I understand now," he said with a smile.' 18:47:19 Katara simply grinned and gave him another quick hug. The rest of her family approached and each wished Aang a happy birthday. The little kids also crowded around Aang gleefully. "So I'm hoping this was all worth it, in the end?" Katara asked. "I know spending a day with Sokka alone is pretty hard." 18:49:46 Aang chuckled. "Ha, yeah...and he had quite some interesting ways of dragging me all over the place, to keep me away from the surprise. Still, I was worried I wasn't going to get to see you today...but, I did. Yeah..it was worth it." 18:51:59 "Well, I'm glad," she replied. "And you'll have to tell me exactly what he did to keep your attention. But that's for later because you have presents to open!" She led him over to where all the gifts had been piled. 18:55:59 Aang followed Katara over. On the table were many gifts from the family and some of his friends. He looked at the large pile and blushed. "Wow, you guys didn't have to get me all this..." he chuckled nervously. 16:50:27 Katara laughed at his modesty. "Aw, c'mon, it's your birthday," she said, picking up the two packages carefully and placing them in front of him. "Well, these are from me... I hope you like them." 16:53:24 Aang put the gifts aside for the moment. "You know...they always say to save the best for last," he chuckled. With that said, he pulled out another gift. 16:55:34 Katara chuckled. "Well, I don't think they'll be the best, but if you want to go ahead and make that assumption, be my guest." She looked at the large pile. "Wonder how you're going to make room for all this stuff," she mused. "You might just need a separate igloo." 17:17:49 Aang chuckled at his girlfriend's own modesty. "Come on...only the best person could give me the best gifts." With that said, he looked at all the gifts again. "Seriously...you guys didn't have to get this many," he again laughed nervously. The first gift he pulled had actually come from Sokka. He opened it to see that it was a boomerang, albeit poorly constructed. "Uhhh, thanks Sokka..." he nervously said. "Come on Aang, now we have twin boomerangs!" Aang just laughed and showed off Sokka's work to the crowd. 17:20:31 Katara laughed and shook her head in mock disapproval. "Really?" she asked her brother, not angry, just amused. "Twin boomerangs? You're something else..." Sokka just said, "What? Aang likes it, right, Aang?" 17:22:26 Aang nodded. "Yeah, I do." He thought of the moves he could use his boomerang with in conjunction with Airbending. "I'll teach you the art of the boomerang tomorrow," Sokka said to him. 17:25:22 "Hasn't he seen enough of you today?" Katara asked. Sokka stuck his tongue out. "Too bad. I'm giving him boomerang lessons tomorrow, whether you like it or not." "Alright...," she said, turning away from the one-track conversation. "Time to open more presents," she told Aang. 17:27:14 Aang picked the next present, which was from Master Pakku. It was in a box, like one meant for jewelry. He opened the box to see a pendant with the Waterbending logo. "It's a couple of years late, Aang, but let me explain," Pakku said. (cont'd) 17:28:31 "Back in the Northern Tribe, I used to give my students these pendants when they mastered Waterbending. After I moved here, I forgot about them. So, I owed you one, as Katara helped you master it. Katara, I owe you one, too." Aang smiled and placed it over him. "Thanks, Pakku." 17:30:55 "How pretty," Katara remarked. "I didn't know you would receive a pendant for mastering Waterbending. That's a nice tradition." Pakku chuckled and said, "Yes, silly of me to forget then and I apologize for that." "No worries," she replied. 20:42:28 Aang continued through the gifts. The next he came up on was a piece of paper. "It's from us, Aang!" A little girl, surrounded by various other children said. The Avatar looked at the paper to see it was a painting of all the kids hugging him. The text appeared to read as: "Happy 14th birthday Aang! We love you!". Aang looked at the kids and smiled. "Awww...thanks everyone." The kids again ran up to him happily, before being ordered back to give him space. 20:45:05 Katara watched as the kids crowded around the young Avatar before being called back by their parents. Aang had been their idol from the very start and it was cute to see how they still worshipped the ground he walked on. She then decided to take a seat nearby. It would be a while before they were all through with this. 20:47:28 About twenty minutes later, Aang had finished up all the gifts...except for two. "Well, Katara, like I said...the best is saved for last," he motioned towards her. 20:49:23 Katara smiled and said, "Well, I hope you like what I got you. It's nothing really too special." She rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. 20:55:27 Aang took out the first gift, which appeared large yet soft. He squeezed it a little before beginning to unwrap out. Out of the wrapping appeared a grey parka, made of very soft fur. "Katara! Wow...this is...excellent," he exclaimed. "What did you make this out of? It's soft...like sheep's fur." 20:57:55 Katara blushed. "Aw, it's nothing. It's just made out of a soft fabric I was able to find. It's supposed to feel like sheep's wool, except it's not actually animal fur. I figured you wouldn't exactly like something that was." 20:59:49 Aang smiled brightly at her for keeping his views in mind. "Thanks, Katara." Her second gift to him was wrapped sort of oddly, but the gift stood up. Aang unwrapped it and saw it was an urn, crafted overseas. He opened it to see a short message. (Cont'd) 21:03:30 The message read as follows. "Dear Aang, can you believe it? Already you are 14 years old, and it is the second birthday I get to celebrate with you. Another year older and wiser. It's just another way to see that you have continued to grow up so fast. It's fun watching you get more mature by the day. It's hard to believe you have grown up so much in just two years! It makes me more and more glad every day that I found you and chose you to be my love. With lots of love, Katara." 21:06:26 Katara grinned as she watched Aang read the message, a smile creep on his face as well. "I figured it'd be a nice piece to put in your house, you know. The green colors will definitely stand out against the blues and whites of practically everything else." 21:07:54 Aang smiled greatly after reading the note. "Thank you...Katara...for everything." He got up out of his chair and hugged his girlfriend tightly. 21:09:49 Katara happily returned the hug. "You're welcome. Anything for you. Heh, so I take it you enjoyed everything, even if earlier was a hassle?" 21:11:54 Aang sighed happily. "Yeah...the wait has been worth it." He then separated from the hug as Hakoda stepped up to make an announcement. "All right, everyone is now welcome to have cake!" 21:16:19 "Awesome!" Sokka exclaimed and made a beeline to the table. The two laughed at this site and then walked over to the table where there was a triple-layer Air Nomad-style fruit cake with fourteen candles.(cont'd) 21:17:41 The villagers all gathered round and soon, they all joined together in song. "Happy Birthday to you; Happy Birthday to you; Happy Birthday, dear Aang! Happy Birthday to you!" "Now make a wish and blow out the candles," Katara said. 21:20:44 Aang looked at Katara and whispered to her. "My wish already has come true, you know..." After this, keeping his breath in check, he blew out the candles, the small flames quickly being extinguished. 21:23:05 The crowds applauded, some whistling enthusiastically. "Happy Birthday, Aang!" the kids cheered. Katara laid a hand on Aang's shoulder, grinning widely, amazed at how well everything had turned out. Today would surely be a day to remember. 21:24:42 After Aang and Katara finished their cake, the Avatar motioned for his girlfriend to join him outside. 21:27:09 Katara followed Aang outside the banquet hall. A silvery crescent moon hung low in the sky; the night sky was cloudless dotted with dozens of twinkling stars. Their feet crunched in the snow. 21:28:14 Aang took a hold of Katara's hands. "Katara...like I said earlier...this has been a long day, especially with Sokka," he short of chuckled. "But...it was worth it. I'm glad you did this all for me...though you didn't have to." 21:31:09 "Of course I had to," she replied. "You more than deserve something like this. I'm so glad you enjoyed yourself tonight. And I know, spending the entire day with Sokka couldn't have been easy." 21:32:55 Aang again laughed. "Ha, you should have seen some of the ways he was trying to stall...he took me to a weapons shop, and was even telling me to walk around outside the village!" 21:35:44 Katara laughed as well. "Boy, is my brother crazy or what? He dragged you to a weapons shop then out of the village? That's Sokka for you... And then he took off and lost you, he told me." She sighed. 21:38:13 Aang's look changed to one of slight sadness. "Yeah...when that happened, I went home, and I didn't see any of you...I got worried. I though you all took off on me...and I hadn't seen you all day. Then Sokka came back, and I found out that you set up this party, of course." 21:40:49 "I'm sorry if that upset you," Katara apologized softly. "I was worried you'd feel that way." She wrapped an arm around his shoulders. 21:42:25 "It's okay...I see what it was all for now. Heh, Sokka..." he responded. "But...I'm glad for all this. And...well, I'm glad that I got this time with you. Two birthdays with you...and I hope for many more." 21:44:11 She grinned once more and said, "Well, if it's many more that you want, it's many more that you'll get. I enjoyed spending this with you and it was kind of hard to have to stay away for the day." 21:45:03 "I know...I missed you today," he whispered. "But...we made our way back to each other. I love you, Katara...so much." 21:46:35 "I love you, too, Aang," she told him and hugged him again. 21:47:16 "Hey...that surprise sort of freaked me out..." he said. "You may have given me ideas," he added with a chuckle. 21:48:30 "Heh, it did?" she asked. She remembered the confused look on Aang's face when he had walked in and how it took him moments to regain his senses. "Uh oh; I suspect you're going to start pulling things like this with me now?" she said light-heartedly. 21:55:13 "Maybe..." he said with another laugh. "Still...I guess I have my work cut out for me to make your 16th birthday just as memorable." 21:56:23 "Oh c'mon, I don't need any big celebration or anything. Just spending it with you and the rest of my family and friends is more than enough to please me," she told him. 21:57:34 "Well, I didn't need one either," Aang responded. "Yet, you still went out of your way to make one for me."' 21:59:50 "Heh, well, like I said, you did deserve it," she replied. "I'm so relieved everything went smoothly tonight. Just the way I had planned." 22:02:17 "If I deserve it, you deserve it too," Aang said. "And yeah...it went well. Thank you, once again." 22:03:47 Katara blushed slightly then responded, "You're welcome." It seemed like they were the only two people in the world, even though muffled cheers and talking could be heard from inside. 22:05:03 Seeing that they had the scene to themselves, Aang smiled at her lovingly. "Now...here's a thank you gift." He closed his eyes and moved to kiss her. 22:07:26 Katara closed her eyes as well and leaned in. Their lips met and the two enjoyed a kiss under the starry sky. 22:09:07 Aang deepened the kiss, making it one of great affection and love for her. He wrapped her arms around her, keeping the kiss going. 22:12:22 She became wrapped up in the moment and embraced the Avatar as well. The perfect touch to a perfect birthday celebration for the best of boyfriends. 22:14:36 Aang separated from the kiss. "And that...makes this a perfect birthday. Thank you so much, Katara." 22:18:02 Katara beamed. "Perfect, huh? Well, you're very welcome." 22:19:22 "Yes...perfect," he replied. "I don't know what I did to deserve someone like you...whatever it was, it must have been pretty good." He gave his girlfriend a kiss on the cheek and another hug. 22:20:46 "Oh please," she said brightly. "You're wondering how you got me? I'm wondering how I got someone like you." She returned the hug. 22:22:52 Aang let his eyes water up and even a stray tear trickle down his face, joyed that he had someone like her to love. 22:25:17 Katara wiped away the tear that fell down his cheek, never ceasing to grin as she looked at him happily. 22:26:49 After they separated, Aang broke the silence. "Well..what's left to do now?" 22:27:50 "I'm not sure," Katara answered, looking over to the entrance to the banquet hall. "I suspect the party is about to wrap up soon. Good thing; I'm getting a bit tired." 22:28:33 Aang yawned, the long day of running around and long night of celebrating getting to him. "I guess, same here," he chuckled. 22:30:46 "Guess we better head inside before people start wondering where the guest of honor has gone," she mused and began heading towards the entrance. 22:33:12 The two walked inside to see the party had thinned out, just a few people lurking and conversing. "Well, I guess I know what you two were up to..." Sokka chuckled, seeing the loving looks on each of their faces. "Ah, you lovebirds..." 22:34:58 Katara sighed. Her brother, sometimes... Well, it didn't really matter. Let him tease her and Aang all he wanted for tonight. It didn't really matter to her. 22:40:21 Over the next twenty minutes, everyone still left chipped in to help clean up the mess, Aang, Katara, and the family included. After this was done, they all left the banquet hall. 22:41:40 "Well, I hope you had a good time tonight, Avatar Aang," Hakoda said as they walked back to their respective houses together. 22:42:22 "Yes, I did," Aang said. "Thanks, Chief Hakoda, and thanks to all of you. Even you, Sokka." 22:44:42 Sokka smiled and said, "Yeah, you couldn't have done this all, without me, right? In fact, I probably played the most important role of all." Katara barely stifled a laugh as her brother took all the credit. 22:45:56 Hakoda laughed and gave his son a playful shove. "Sure, Sokka...whatever you say." Sokka looked back at his father. "What? Without me, the surprise is ruined!" 22:47:14 "Well, yes, you did help, Sokka," Katara told him. "We did need someone to distract Aang and you did a good job, dragging him all over the place." 22:50:37 The family made their way to their various homes. "Well, good night everyone," Aang said. "Again, I can't thank all of you enough for this party and the gifts." 22:52:44 "No problem," Hakoda told him; Pakku nodded in agreement. The group then began disbanding, bidding one another good night. Katara herself felt her eyes growing heavy with sleep; she yawned a bit. 22:53:52 "Well, Katara...your birthday's not too far off...excited?" Aang asked. "Won't be long before we do this again...just, it will be your celebration." 22:55:46 "Heh, well, it's still a few months away," she said. "But yeah, I am excited. Just whatever you do, don't have me spend the entire day with Sokka taking me all over the South Pole." 22:56:43 "After today," Aang responded, "I can see that no one deserves that." The couple laughed. "I can still hear you!" Sokka said, slightly annoyed. 22:57:55 "Oh good night, you!" Katara called out and laughed again. "But yeah, tonight was great." 22:59:10 "Yes...it was," Aang said with a smile. "Well...I am exhausted. Good night, Katara...I shall see you tomorrow." 22:59:43 "Same here," she agreed. "Alright then. Good night, Aang, and yes, I will see you tomorrow." 23:00:09 Aang gave Katara a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "I love you...pleasant dreams." 23:00:56 Katara reciprocated the hug. "I love you, too, and sweet dreams as well." 23:01:24 With that, Aang returned to his home, though not before turning to look over his shoulder and give Katara one more smile. 23:03:10 Katara grinned at Aang through her sleepiness then stepped inside her house. She wasted no time in plopping on her bed, more than content after a great night, and in a few moments, was fast asleep. Notes * First and only roleplay set on a character's birthday. Category:Roleplay